Turkish TV series, which are highly acclaimed abroad, have begun appearing in India, as well as in Middle Eastern and South American countries.
Erdal Sabri Ergen, consul-general of Turkey to Mumbai, told Anadolu Agency that Turkish TV series first entered India with "Adını Feriha Koydum" (I Named Her Feriha) in October 2015.
Indicating that India has imported a number of series from Australia, Pakistan and South Korea besides Turkey, Ergen said, "There was one Turkish series in India in October 2015, and now the number of Turkish series sold to India has risen to 12, which is a great success."
The consul-general to Mumbai said that Indian broadcasters first saw Turkish TV series on Pakistani televisions and then broadcast them in India, bringing many Turkish movie and series companies to India under the leadership of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, after "Adını Feriha Koydum" was greatly appreciated in the country.
Touching on the reasons why Turkish TV series are widely acclaimed by Indian people, Ergen stated that one of the factors is the similarity between the family lives of Turks and Indians.
Since Turkish TV series address what happens in daily life, Ergen noted that Indians associate themselves with characters in these series.
"Turks are both European and Asian in the eyes of the Indians, and this is why they find them interesting. The places and landscapes in Turkey in the series are having the ear of Indians," he added.
Calinos Entertainment Foreign Sales Director Aslı Serim Guliyev said, following "Adını Feriha Koydum," the first Turkish TV series broadcast in India, they sold the TV series "İlişki Durumu Karışık" (Relationship Status: Complicated), "Bir Aşk Hikayesi" (A Love Story) and "Acil Aşk Aranıyor" (Emergency Love) and the movies "Mucize" (Miracle)," "Uzun Hikaye" (Long Story) and "Gecenin Kanatları" (Wings of Night) to the country.
Guliyev stressed that Turkey exports more than 70 TV series to the world. He also noted that Turkey ranks second in terms of TV series sales in the world after the U.S.
Turkey's TV series exports amounted to $350 billion at the end of 2016 and the country aims to reach $1 billion by 2023 in this area.
"We sell TV series to almost every region of the world. The Middle East, Balkans, eastern Europe, South America, North Africa and Central Asia are markets where we are the strongest. India began broadcasting Turkish TV series in 2015. Thanks to rapid and positive feedback, India promises a good future in terms of TV series sales," Guliyev added.
Global Agency Asia Region Sales Director Işıl Türkşen said that Turkish TV series have attracted worldwide interest over the past five years and gained popularity in Latin American countries, Southeastern Asian countries, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh after they entered the Middle East, Balkans and Eastern European markets.
Two joint movies to be producedPana Film, the production company of "Kurtlar Vadisi" (Valley of the Wolves), recently agreed to jointly shoot two movies with Eros International, a Bollywood film company.
As a result of the agreement, the two companies have begun screenplay studies. The most prominent movie stars from India and Turkey will appear in the two movie projects, which will be shot in both countries and both languages.
Pana Film Chairman Necati Şaşmaz said that they start all jointly produced movies by developing empathy.
"Getting to know the country and culture and preparing the stories by understanding the people of that region has brought us success in these works. From this perspective, we have come to terms with Eros International," Şaşmaz said.
Underlining that both companies aim to maintain this partnership for many years to come, he cited the determination to work, the ability to find common ground and harmony in stories as the secret of the success of their partnerships. Kürşat Saygılı, a Turkish cinema author, noted that Turkey, along with the U.S. and France, are among the countries with a higher percentage of spectators watching national films than foreign films.